Indiana Athletics

Men's Basketball

Big Ten Weekly Men's Basketball Central - Nov. 10-16

BIG TEN MEN'S BASKETBALL  •  BIG TEN STATISTICS  •  NCAA STATISTICS
BIG TEN SCHEDULE & RESULTS  •  BIG TEN STANDINGS
NCAA AP TOP 25 POLL  •  NCAA USA TODAY TOP 25 POLL

WEEKLY RELEASE - NOV. 10
 

Big Ten. Big News

  • Through the first week of the season, Big Ten teams boast a 35-6 overall record, including a 30-1 mark on home court. Nationally, the Big Ten ranks third in the nation in wins and win percentage (.854) behind the ACC (40-4, .909) and the SEC (37-3, .925). 
  • The Big Ten is well represented in the preseason AP and USA Today Coaches’ Polls with 10 teams earning recognition in one or both polls. Illinois leads the way, as the Illini are ranked No. 3 in both polls, followed by No. 5 Michigan State, No. 9/15 UCLA, No. 20/21 Michigan, No. 21/22 USC, and No. 25/24 Nebraska. Indiana, Iowa, Purdue, and Wisconsin also received voted in one or both polls.    
  • This week's game slate features several contests against ranked opponents. Tonight, No. 5 Michigan State will face No. 2 Duke at 6 p.m. at Chicago's United Center as part of the Champions Classic (ESPN), while No. 3 Illinois will visit No. 16 Texas Tech at 8 p.m. (Peacock/NBCSN). On Friday, Ohio State will travel to Storrs, Conn. to face No. 4 Connecticut at 7:30 p.m. (TNT), with Maryland welcoming No. 9 Virginia to College Park for an 8 p.m. tipoff (Peacock/NBCSN).
  • On Monday, the Big Ten announced its first men's basketball weekly awards for the 2026-27 season. USC sophomore Alijah Arenas was named Player of the Week after averaging 25.5 points and 6.0 rebounds in a pair of wins for the Trojans. Arenas paired 21 points and eight boards in the team's 95-63 season-opening win over Milwaukee, then set a career high with 30 points in a 93-86 win over Wichita State.
  • UCLA guard/forward Nikola Kusturica was named Freshman of the Week, claiming the honor after tallying 19.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 2.5 blocked shots in his first two collegiate games. Kusturica posted 10 points, five rebounds, and three blocked shots in the Bruins' season-opening 84-75 win over No. 5 Arizona. The Novi Sad, Serbia native also scored 26 of his 29 points in the first half of a 114-63 win over North Florida.
  • Milestone Watch... Congratulations to Iowa head coach Ben McCollum, who recently collected his 450th career win... Congratulations to Nebraska's Pryce Sandfort, who surpassed 1,000 career points in the Huskers' season-opener against Le Moyne.
  • Ten Big Ten players representing seven schools have been named to the 2026-27 Jersey Mikes Naismith Trophy Player of the Year Watch List, the Atlanta Tipoff Club recently announced. Illinois trio Tomislav Ivisic, David Mirkovic, and Andrej Stojakovic are joined by Michigan pair Elliot Cadeau and Trey McKenney, Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr., Nebraska's Pryce Sandfort, Ohio State's John Mobley Jr., USC's Rodney Rice, and Wisconsin's Nolan Winter among the 50 players named to the initial watch list.
  • Three Big Ten players, Illinois’ David Mirkovic, Michigan’s Elliot Cadeau, and Michigan State’s Jeremy Fears Jr. have been named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Preseason Player of the Year Watch, with Mirkovic and Fears also named to the AP Preseason All-America Team. The trio also claimed spots on the CBS Sports Preseason All-America squad, with Mirkovic and Fears garnering First Team honors and Cadeau receiving third team accolades.
  • Michigan State guard Jeremy Fears has been named 2026-27 Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year by a select media panel. Last season, Fears was the only player in the country to average 15.0 points and 9.0 assists, posting a team-high 15.2 points while leading the nation with 9.4 assists. The Joliet, Ill. native also ranked second in the country with 328 total assists, setting a new Michigan State record for assists in a season. 
  • The media panel also selected a 10-member Preseason All-Big Ten Team. Nine of the Big Ten’s 18 teams are represented on the team, with Fears and Nebraska senior Pryce Sandfort named as unanimous selections. Fears and Sandfort joined by Illinois’ David Mirkovic and Andrej Stojakovic, Maryland’s Pharrel Payne, Michigan’s Elliot Cadeau and Trey McKenney, Ohio State’s John Mobley Jr., UCLA’s Trent Perry, USC’s Rodney Rice, and Wisconsin’s Nolan Winter.  
  • For the ninth consecutive year, each Big Ten Conference member institution will compete in a 20-game conference schedule. Beginning on Tuesday, Dec. 1, a total of 18 conference games will be played between Dec. 1-13 before conference play breaks. Big Ten action will resume on Wednesday, Dec. 30 with a pair of contests. During the conference season, each member institution will play a 20-game league schedule, facing three schools both home and away, while meeting 14 teams once. Of the single-play opponents, member institutions will play seven at home and seven on the road.
  • The 30th annual TIAA Big Ten Tournament will be played at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, March 9-14, 2027. The tournament will open with a pair of games on Tuesday, March 9 and culminate with championship on Sunday, March 14.